The Veteran's claims for service connection for left and right hand tendinitis were dismissed because the symptoms are covered by already granted service connections. The claims for left elbow lateral epicondylitis and left rotator cuff tendonitis with rotator cuff tear were remanded for further evaluation.
The deciding factor: The dismissal was based on the 'pyramid rule' which prevents multiple ratings for the same symptomatology.
- Claimed conditions
- left hand tendinitis, right hand tendinitis, left elbow lateral epicondylitis, left rotator cuff tendonitis with rotator cuff tear
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 22, 2025
- Citation
- A25005366
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 699 · Granted: 12% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation A25005366.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased rating have been remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding the etiology of his left elbow condition and the severity of his right knee condition, taking into account the ameliorative effects of medication.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has dismissed the issues of higher initial ratings for service-connected bilateral knee disability, migraine variants, and bilateral hearing loss as well as service connection for generalized anxiety disorder. The issues of service connection for right elbow lateral epicondylitis and left elbow lateral epicondylitis are remanded due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology. Service connection for depression is also remanded due to conflicting diagnoses.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for left elbow lateral epicondylitis and osteoarthritis, but denied service connection for degenerative arthritis and DDD other than IVDS of the neck and low back condition.
- Whole decision: Granted
Service connection is granted for tinnitus, as it was incurred during service due to exposure to loud noise.,Service connection is denied for left knee patella tendon tear (status post repair), as the current condition did not have its onset during a period of honorable service and is not otherwise etiologically related to active service.
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